MEP Nikola Minchev commented in the studio of "The Day Begins with Georgi Lyubenov" on BNT on the draft state budget, the political situation in the country and the relations between the ruling party and the opposition. According to him, the dispute over the budget is completely justified, but the problem lies in the way the political debate is conducted in Bulgaria.
"There is always a point in a dispute over the budget. The budget is the bill with which a government implements its policies. That is why the political debate on it is one of the most meaningful conversations that can be had. The problem in Bulgaria is that the political conversation has been reduced to a very low level – the focus is shifting from policies to personal attacks and comical clashes", he said.
Minchev did not agree with the thesis that the current budget can be justified solely by the fact that it was adopted in the middle of the year:
"Even if we assume that this is a transitional budget, it should hint at the reforms that the government intends to make. We do not see such a thing. If we are talking about a reform in the state administration, which has been a recognized problem for years, then in this budget the expenses for the administration increase by a billion and a half. This is not a request for reform – quite the opposite."
According to him, the state needs to gradually optimize the administration, especially against the backdrop of a decreasing population. When asked why the PP-DB's criticisms of the budget coincide with those of GERB, Minchev noted that both parties are in opposition:
"Both GERB and we are in the opposition position. It is completely natural to criticize the legislative proposals and policies of the ruling party. The coalition is in power, not in opposition. This does not mean that we have a common political line."
According to him, the real test for the ruling party is ahead in the reform of the judicial system:
"It will be very interesting to see how "Progressive Bulgaria" will explain if it decides to dismantle the GERB model – DPS with the support of GERB and DPS. Destroying dependencies built over years with the help of the people who created them is difficult to explain."
Minchev admitted that previous governments also failed to implement all the necessary reforms, but stressed that the current majority has far greater opportunities:
"The current government is the first in years to have a long horizon of governance and a clear parliamentary majority. This is a huge comfort, but also a huge responsibility. We have never had such parliamentary support. It allows for heavy reforms to be made, and this is exactly what society expects."
The MEP also commented on the European Commission's initiated excessive deficit procedure against Bulgaria:
"It is not a question of having violated the 3% deficit rule so far. Until now, Bulgaria has managed to meet the criteria, including after the permissible adjustments for defense spending. The problem is that the European Commission already sees a systemic risk - expenses are permanently outstripping revenues. This is precisely what necessitates reforms."
In his words, if the current budget policy is maintained, exiting the procedure will not happen quickly:
"The government is proposing a budget with a deficit of 5.7%, without serious structural reforms. If there were measures to limit inefficient spending, the procedure could have been completed much faster. However, with the current approach, this will not happen within one or two years."
Minchev also criticized the foreign policy positions of Prime Minister Rumen Radev:
"It seems that he is trying to speak differently to different audiences - one in Bulgaria and another in Brussels. This puts our European partners in a situation where they have to ask themselves what Bulgaria's real position actually is. Such a strategy is not useful for the country."
In his words, a possible Bulgarian veto on a new package of European sanctions would be "a very bad signal":
"If Bulgaria starts to occupy the place that Viktor Orban has occupied so far, this will put us in a very unpleasant group of countries in the European Union."
Minchev also commented on the information that Andrey Gyurov could be a candidate for president:
"It is not about distancing ourselves from Andrey Gyurov. I have known him since our work in the National Assembly and I believe that he is a person of unquestionable qualities. It is just that at the moment no decision has been made, there is no initiative committee and there is nothing to be officially announced."
He added that the presidential institution should play the role of a balancer:
"At "Dondukov" 2 there should be a person who can be a serious institutional opposition to the executive branch. This is healthy for democracy. The concentration of too much power in one place is never good for the state."
The MEP also said that he expects a more active position from the presidential institution on key issues. According to him, the upcoming presidential campaign will be the next major political clash that will determine the agenda in the coming months.